Regan Grimes - Classic Bodybuilder from Canada

Note: The following was written nearly a year ago, when Regan Grimes had yet to make his pro debut. Much has changed since then. He earned a fifth place at the Chicago Pro, sixth in Tampa and was runner-up to Michael Lockett in Vancouver. Not too shabby for a kid who is still only 24 years old! Here’s his story.

If you follow the IFBB Classic Physique division, you are no doubt aware of its newest rising superstar, 22-year-old Chris Bumstead from Canada. And if you’re a fan of bodybuilders with classic shape and aesthetics, you are probably also aware of another young Canadian, Regan Grimes, who turned 24 on June 26 of this year. By the time you read this, he will have made his pro debut in Chicago at just under 6 feet and 242 pounds of balance, symmetry and proportion, with a legitimate 30-inch waist. Yet Regan’s physique has already earned him a substantial fan base, as evidenced by his nearly 300,000 followers on Instagram. Older fans lament that the sport of bodybuilding is dying. I beg to differ. Rather, it’s evolving, as the newer generations shy away from the bloated, cartoonish, big-gut look and strive for more aesthetically appealing types of physiques. Regan Grimes epitomizes this newly sought-after look that really harkens back to the ideals of decades past, albeit with modern-day mass and fullness. If you don’t know anything about this young rookie, it’s time you learned who he is and how he got here.

From Motocross to Muscles

From the age of 10 through 18, Regan could regularly be found on a motorcycle racing motocross. Though he was becoming successful on the Canadian national circuit, injuries were piling up: a broken arm, a sprained ankle, a ruptured spleen and what he estimates as “a few” concussions. The worst part was that getting hurt was out of his control. “When you have 50 guys trying to take the same corner at the same time doing 50-60 miles an hour, you’re going to see a lot of crashes and bikes falling on riders,” he says. Grimes had already started weight training to gain strength to better control his bike, and was already noticing results. Soon he decided he wanted to be a bodybuilder, and the man who inspired him the most in the beginning was another fellow young Canadian, Antoine Vaillant. “His physique seemed more attainable to me than the mass monster types,” Regan tells us, “and he also just seemed like a really cool guy, crazy and funny.” Later, the two would train together and become friends. Regan’s own physique grew and shaped up so quickly that while he was still just 18, he entered and won his first contest. “That was it for me,” he says. “I knew this was what I wanted to do.”

A Fast Rise to the Top

It was clear to anyone with “the eye” that Grimes had serious potential: an ideal bone structure, excellent muscle shapes and insertions, and balanced and proportionate development in all the muscle groups. By age 22, he was already comparing well at the Canadian Championships with the open men’s heavyweights, placing sixth. Since that annual event is the only pro qualifier in the country, many of the best Canadian amateurs seek their fortune at international competitions like the IFBB North American or the various Arnold Amateurs. At the 2016 Arnold Amateur in Ohio, Regan took a close second in the super heavyweights to Russia’s Sergey Kulaev, who went on to win the overall and earn pro status. “Having come that close, I knew I had to keep going,” Grimes says. “The Arnold Amateur in Brazil was three weeks later, and I decided I was going for it.”

Scrambling for both the cash and the proper travel documentation to make the trip, Grimes’ gamble paid off. He did go on to win the super heavyweight and overall titles, and became an IFBB pro while still just 22 years old. “It took a while for it to sink in that I was a pro now,” he reports. “Once it did, I also came to the realization that I was starting over from square one, and I had a lot of work to do before I would be ready to step on a pro stage and hold my own.” Over the next year, he proceeded to add 10 pounds of quality mass, specifically to the areas he needed it: his quads, chest and arms.

A Classic Look – But Not Classic Physique

Because Regan does possess a decidedly aesthetic look, he is often asked why he doesn’t compete in the Classic Physique division. “I love the look of it, and I think it’s an excellent addition to the sport, but I would just have to sacrifice too much muscle mass and fullness to make the weight.” At his height, Regan would need to get down to 217 pounds. That’s roughly 25 pounds lighter than he expects to be at the Chicago Pro. “Still, I have no intentions of playing the size game at the expense of losing my lines,” he states. “One thing I avoid is deadlifts, and I don’t do as many compound movements in general as most top bodybuilders I know. I prefer more isolation exercises, where I can totally focus on the muscle group I’m working.”

The Entrepreneurial Spirit

I’m in my late 40s now, and I have plenty of bodybuilder friends my age who have been talking about starting up their own fitness clothing company or opening up a gym since they were in their early 20s. Regan started an activewear line at the age of 18, and since he was 21, he’s owned FlexPlex Muscle and Fitness gym in his native London, Ontario. “It all started because I wanted a good hardcore gym to train at myself,” he explains. “All the places in my area were more corporate chains.” Though he didn’t have a surplus of capital, Grimes found a 16,000-square foot location. By seeking out used equipment and doing all the renovations himself, the new gym was soon up and running. “I had a vision for a gym where bodybuilders, powerlifters and anyone who takes training seriously would feel welcome, and that’s what it became.” Regan had actually planned to make his pro debut near home at the Toronto Pro, but at three months out, he had the opportunity to buy out his partner and assume full ownership of the gym. “The timing wasn’t great, but I couldn’t pass it up,” he says. Regan was sure to give credit to his fiancée, Victoria D’Ariano, for being instrumental in his success. “She’s with me every step of the way, helping and supporting in everything I do.”

About That Time to Shine

When we spoke, Regan was preparing for both his pro debut in Chicago, as well as the Vancouver Pro in his own nation. If he makes the top three in those, his plan is to continue to the Tampa Pro. When asked if he had any expectations for his rookie shows, he was realistic, but determined. “I want to win, and I have been training and dieting hard to win,” he says. “It also will come down to who else shows up and what they look like, as it always does in bodybuilding. All I can do is bring my best-ever package and see what happens.” His hundreds of thousands of fans, the vast majority of which are 18-25 years old, are rooting for Regan. A win for him would be a victory for physiques that aren’t simply bigger, but better; exhibiting all the classic ideals that the sport was founded on but have become lost in translation over the past 20-odd years. Generation Next is redefining the sport, and ironically, returning it to an era where shape, symmetry, proportion and presentation were all hailed as the qualities to strive for. Regan Grimes is proudly representing this new movement, and is a young man to watch out for in the years to come.

Complete contest history

2012 UFE Championships                                     Winner Fitness Model, Men’s Middleweight, Second Junior Men

2014 CBBF Mississauga Luchka Obrien Classic  Junior winner, Men’s Heavyweight and Overall

2014 CBBF Ontario Provincials                             Second Junior Heavyweight, Second Men’s Heavyweight

2015 CBBF Canadian Championships                  Second Junior Men, Sixth Men’s Heavyweight

2016 IFBB Arnold Amateur (Ohio)                         Second, Super Heavyweight

2016 IFBB Arnold Amateur Brasil                          Super Heayyweight and Overall

2017 IFBB Chicago Pro                                         Fifth place

2017 IFBB Vancouver Pro                                     Second place

2017 IFBB Tampa Pro                                           Sixth place

Training Split

Day 1: Chest, front and medial deltoids and triceps

Day 2: Back, rear deltoids and biceps

Day 3: Legs

Day 4: Chest, front and medial deltoids and triceps

Day 5: Back, rear deltoids and biceps

Day 6: Legs

Day 7: OFF 

Day 1 Hypertrophy Phase: 

Chest, front and medial delts, triceps

Chest

Cable Fly                                             5 x 12,12,15,15,20

Hammer Strength Incline                   4 x 12,12,12, GRIMEY set* 

Flat dumbbell press                            4 x 12,12,15,12

Delts

Barbell or dumbbell press                   4 x 12,12,12,12

Dumbbell side laterals                         5 x 12,15,20,15,12

Dumbbell front raises                          4 x 12,15,20,15 

Triceps

Close grip bench press                       3 x 12,12,12,15

Rope or straight bar pushdown           3 x 12,15,15

1-arm underhand cable extension      3 x 12,15,12

GRIMEY Set

*10 reps 5 second break 

10 reps 10 second break 

Lower the weight 

5 reps with 5 second eccentric 

5 reps with 5 second concentric

Partials till failure  

Day 2 HypertrophyPhase: 

Back, rear deltoids, and biceps

Back

Rope pullovers                                    5 x 15,15,15,20,20

Pull ups

Wide, Narrow, Underhand                  2 x failure every set 

High Hammer Strength Row              4 x 12,12,12, GRIMEY set

Low Hammer Strength Row               4 x 12,12,12, 15  

Smith Machine Mid Row                    4 x 12,12,15,15 

Rear delts 

Reverse Pec Deck                             5 x 20,20,15,12,12

Incline dumbbell curls                         4 x 15,12,12,12

Preacher curl machine                       4 x 15,15,12,12

Cable EZ Curl or Arnold Curls            3 x 15,15, GRIMEY Set

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